Shoe lift and method of making same



Oct. 29, 1957 o. E. GAYDEBOUROFF ,3

SHOE LIFT AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed July 9, 1956 Tic. E.

INVENTOR. 0156 L. 64Y050M0FF ATTOKA/EVJ United States Patent 2,810,935 SHOE LIFT AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Oleg E. Gaydebouroif, Manhasset, N. Y. Application July 9, 1956, Serial No. 596,770 4 Claims. (Cl. 18-59) This invention relates to a new and novel shoe lift and the method of making the same, and more partlcularly to a plastic shoe lift which can be manufactured in situ without the use of special shoemakers tools.

Heretofore the repair of shoes has usually required the services of a professional shoe repairman because of the necessity for special tools, equipment and materials, and particularly because such work involved special skills and experience beyond those generally available for making home shoe repairs.

In the case of womens shoes, with the current style of very long, thin, high heels, it has been very difiicult up until now for effective heel repairs to be made to them even by skilled artisans. Because of the tendency of the narrow heels to split during repairing, extreme care must be exercised, and as few nails are used as is possible to minimize such splitting. As a consequence, this often results in such lifts pulling off during wear, necessitating additional premature repairs with further weakening of the heel.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a low-cost shoe lift which can be quickly and easily manufactured in situ by home repair without requiring special skill, experience, tools or equipment.

Another object is to provide such a shoe lift which can be formed directly on the shoe heel without removal of the worn lift therefrom.

An additional object is to provide such a lift which is resilient, shock-resistant, and has good adhesive and abrasive-resistant qualities.

Other objects and features will become apparent in the following detailed description and in the claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows a typical womans high-heeled shoe;

Fig. 2 shows a heel portion of a shoe with a worn lift;

Fig. 3 shows the heel portion with tape wound around it to form a casting shell;

Fig. 4 shows the device of Fig. 3 being filled with plastic casting material;

Fig. 5 shows the filled shell being hardened; and

Fig. 6 shows the hardened lift and heel with tape removed.

In the new and novel method of the present invention, it is desired to repair the lift portion 10 of a shoe heel 11 (see Figs. 1 and 2). First, the lift portion 10 should be cleaned with a cloth or paper to remove any dirt or foreign matter. Next, a dam or casting shell 12 is made around the periphery of the heel so that the side or edge 13 of the shell extends beyond or above the lift portion 10 as shown in Fig. 3. This is most easily accomplished by the use of Scotch tape or the like. The tape 14 is wrapped around the edge of the lift portion as shown and provides a liquid-tight shell conforming to the shape of the shoe heel. Placing the shoe heel in an inverted position, it is now ready for the casting step.

The casting material used in this invention is one which is in a liquid form prior to use and upon use will set to a hardened condition at ambient temperatures. It must "ice be a material which exhibits virtually no shrinkage or contraction during solidification or hardening, has good adhesive properties with respect to shoe heels, and has wear-resistance which is good (i. e. at least as good as leather used for the same purposes). Many liquid thermosetting plastic compositions and other materials wellknown and on the market today fulfill these requirements. I have found that an epoxy resin material is particularly satisfactory. It is ERL 2795 sold by the Bakelite Company, a division of Union Carbide & Carbon Corporation, and is the diglycedal ether of bisphenol, being the resultant product formed by the exothermic reaction of epichlorohydrin and bisphenol. This material in use is mixed with a hardener, ERL 2793, which is a complex polyamide, and, if desired, a filler such as finely powdered aluminum, and because of its thermosetting properties at ambient or room temperature hardens to give an excellent lift material having all of the above desired properties.

As an illustrative example, I have poured into the type of casting shell described above (see Fig. 4) four parts by weight of the ERL 2795 epoxy resin, one part by weight of the ERL 2793 hardener, and two parts by weight of the aluminum filler, mixed them thoroughly and then let it sit for approximately five to eight hours at ordinary room temperature. The resultant product was a material which performed very well in service as a shoe lift.

Similar materials sold by other companies may be used with equally satisfactory results. For example, Ciba 502 epoxy resin and Ciba 951 hardener have performed well, as have Marblett 645 epoxy resin and 6458 hardener. The former materials are sold by Ciba Pharmaceutical Corporation and the latter by Marblett Corporation.

Since the particular materials mentioned above give a somewhat colorless transparent product, it is to be understood that suitable well-known coloring agents can be added to give whatever color might be desired.

During the so-called casting step of this inventive method, the materials can be either mixed just prior to pouring into the casting shell, or they can be mixed directly in the shell immediately after pouring, the choice being one of convenience. The inverted heel should be maintained in a horizontal position during the casting step and the materials are added to a desired level in the shell so that a lift 15 of the proper and desired thickness will be obtained (see Fig. 5).

After sufficient time has been allowed for hardening, the Scotch tape is stripped away from the heel and lift (see Fig. 6), leaving the shoe in repaired condition and ready for use.

As should now be apparent, it is unnecessary in practicing the present invention to remove the worn portion of the old lift. It may be left in place if desired and the new lift formed right over it. Furthermore, one of the advantageous features of this invention is that a material is used which has excellent inherent adhesive properties with respect to the shoe heel material (e. g. wood, leather, etc.) and, by virtue of the fact it is liquid when poured, it completely contacts the entire bottom surface 16 of the shoe lift portion 10, filling any and all of the interstices, grooves or other surface irregularities thereof, and without the need for or use of any other adhesive material being interposed between such bottom surface and the lift material. A shoe lift is obtained which has a more complete bonding to the shoe heel and repair damage to the structure and strength of the heel is substantially eliminated.

In this manner, a shoe lift is constructed in situ on the shoe heel by simple means with no special skills or experience and no special tools or elaborate machinery being needed so that such repair work can be done at home by anyone.

While one embodiment of the present invention has 3 been shown and described herein, it is recognized that certain'changes and alterations will be obvious to those skilled in the art which do not depart from the spirit and scopeofthisinvention. j

1. The method of making a shoe lift in ;on an inverted shoe heel'consisting of wrapping-a tape about the contour of said heel extending above the lift portion there'- of to define a mold cavity conforming .to the shape of said heel; introducinginto said shell to a desired level a liquid composition whichuponsetting will harden Without appreciable shrinkageto form a lift material firmly adhering to said lift portion and having good .wear char acte'risticsgand removing said tape after said composition has hardened.

2. The. method. of making a shoe lift in situ on an invertedshoe heel consisting of wrapping a tape about the contour of said heel extending above the lift portion thereof to define a'mold cavity conforming to the shape of said heel; introducing into said shell to a desiredlevel a liquid thermosetting plastic composition which 'upon setting will harden'without appreciable'shrinkage' to form a lift material firmly adhering to said lift portion and having wear characteristics at least as good as leather; and removing said tape after said composition has hardened.

3. The method of making a shoe lift in situ on a shoe heel consisting of wrapping an adhesive tape about the contour of said heel extending above the lift portion thereof to define a mold. cavity conforming to the shape of said heel; introducing into said shell a liquid mixture containing four parts by weight of the diglycedal ether of bisphenol, one part by Weight of a complex polyamide hardener, and two partsby weight of an aluminum filler, to form a liquid layer in said shell to a desired level; and removing said tape after said mixture has hardened.

4. The method of making a shoelift in situ on an in- 5 verted shoe heel consisting of cleaning the lift portion of said heel to remove any foreign matter; wrapping an ad hesive tape about the periphery of said heelwith sides extending above said lift portion to define a mold cavity conforming to the shape of said heel; introducing into said 7 10 Shell reactive proportions of a thermosetting epoxy resin and a liquid hardening agent in sufiicient total amount to fill said shell to a desired leve1;.thoroughly mixing said resin and said agent immediately upon introduction; and removing said tape after such mixture has hardened.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 1,580 Wimley Nov. 24, I863 2,060,715 Arvin Nov. 10, 1936' 2,129,106 Szerenyi Sept. 6,1938 2,299,195 Ushakoff Oct. 20,1942 2,437,030 Hoza Mar. 2, 1948 2,506,486 Bender May 2, 1950 257 2,638,633 Root May 19,1953- 2,651,118 Root Sept. '8, 1953 2,694,871 Rollman N0v.'2'3, 19 54 OTHER REFERENCES l'Epoxies-No Wonder, 'Modern Plastics, October S 1952, pages 89-94. (Copy in Div. '260--47EP.) 

